Vivaldi potato facts for kids

The Vivaldi potato is a special type of potato (called a cultivar) that was first created in the Netherlands. It was developed by a company called HZPC. Later, a company in Lincolnshire, England, named 'Naturally Best' helped share and sell these potatoes in the UK.

What Makes Vivaldi Potatoes Special?

The Vivaldi potato is known for a few cool things. It's often called the 'weight watcher's potato' because some studies have shown it has fewer calories and carbohydrates than many other popular potatoes. However, it's good to know that some other potato types, like 'Charlotte' and Sainsbury's own Baby Potatoes, have similar amounts of calories and carbs.

Why the Name 'Vivaldi'?

The name 'Vivaldi' was chosen because of a famous composer named Antonio Vivaldi. He wrote a well-known piece of music called "The Four Seasons". Just like the music covers all seasons, Vivaldi potatoes are grown in different places, so you can find them all year round! The Vivaldi potato was created from two parent potatoes called 'TZ 77 148' and 'Monalisa'.

Cooking with Vivaldi Potatoes

Vivaldi potatoes are also known as the 'butterless baker'. This is because they have a creamy texture and a great flavor. When you bake them, you might not even need to add butter to make them taste good!

How Vivaldi Potatoes Grow

Vivaldi potatoes are a "Second Early" variety. This means they are ready to harvest fairly early in the growing season. They produce oval-shaped potatoes with yellow skin and light yellow inside. They are also good at resisting a common potato problem called scab.

Plant Features

The Vivaldi potato plant grows tall. Its stems are slightly colored and have small swollen parts called nodes. The leaves are oval-shaped. The flowers have orange parts (anthers) and white petals (corolla) with a clear star shape in the middle. The potatoes themselves have only a few shallow "eyes" (the spots where new sprouts can grow). The sprouts that grow from the potato are a reddish-purple color.

Protecting Vivaldi Potatoes from Diseases

Vivaldi potatoes are quite strong against many plant diseases.

• They are completely safe from potato wart, which is a serious disease.
• They are very good at resisting PVA and PVY, which are common potato viruses.
• They are also pretty good at resisting other problems like leaf roll, PVX, late blight on the potato itself, silver scurf, blackleg, and black dot.
• However, they can be a bit more affected by late blight on their leaves, common scab, powdery scab, rhizoctonia, and skin spot.

Awards and Recognition

The Vivaldi potato has won some awards for being a great potato!

• In 2006, it won in the Fresh Produce category at the Q Food and Drink awards.
• In 2011, it won a gold award at The Grocer Label Awards.
• It also received the RHS AGM, which is a special award given to plants that perform very well in gardens.